Kazan 2015

Give you goose bumps.

Чемпионат мира ФИНА в Казани 2015

2,693 athletes from 73 countries representing 726 sport clubs competed at the Masters tournament.
The competitions were delivered across 14 age groups – from 25 till 100 years old. 572 medal events have been contested at the World Masters Championships.

Director General of the Executive Directorate for Sports Projects, Azat Kadyrov named key factors of the successful delivery of the FINA World Championships in Kazan. He also shared his ideas regarding the reason for numerous world records that were set both by participants of the main event and the Masters tournament: http://masters.kazan2015.com/en/news_items/3509

An example to follow!
Synchronised swimmer Natalia Ishchenko came back to professional sport after maternity leave. The Russian won three gold medals at the 2015 FINA World Championships.


Photo: R-Sport / MIA Rossiya Segodnya

Swimming is like a flying!
And we can do it.


Photo: R-Sport / MIA Rossiya Segodnya

The 16th FINA World Championships are over but the dazzling show of the Closing Ceremony will linger in the minds of people for a long time.

Some of World Championships Records:
- Swedish swimmer Sarah Sjostrom managed to break the world record (55.74) in the women’s 100 butterfly final event. The next day she stomped her name once again upon the women’s 100m butterfly heat, finishing in 55.64.

- Distinguished Russian synchronised swimmer Natalia Ishchenko set a Championships record in the solo free routine, picking up 97.23 points.

- US swimmer Katie Ledecky is a breakthrough of the Championships, the experts say. She broke a world record in the women’s 1,500m freestyle preliminary heat, touching home in 15:27.71. The next day Ledecky set a new world record in the final (15:25.48).

- Hungarian swimmer Katinka Hosszu set a new world mark in the 200m medley with a time of 2:06.12.

- South African swimmer Cameron van der Burgh finished the 50m breaststroke preliminary heat with a record time of 26.62. It did not take British Adam Peaty too long to break it later that evening in the semifinal, his world record time being 26.42. Implacably for both of them, none won the world title in the final.

- Team Great Britain took gold in the mixed 4х100 medley final (3:41.71), breaking a world record which belonged to the Russian team in the morning and to the US team in the afternoon.

We propose to continue the conversation about 16th FINA World Championships 2015 in Kazan and recallect the most vivid moments. Then won't end!
What was the most memorable for you?

Famous Russian synchro swimmer, three-time Olympic champion, 15-time world champion, 7-time European champion. Together with Natalia Ishchenko, she competed in the duet routine. After the London 2012 Olympic Games, she performs in the solo, duet (with Svetlana Kolesnichenko) and team events. She earned her latest two gold medals at the 2015 FINA World Championships in Kazan.
Svetlana Romashina has answered your questions!

@ parmidasaga – What is your typical training day?
- I can tell you about my typical day before the Championships. Since I performed only in solo and duet program, I had one training session, not like the girls, who performed in the group. I woke up at 6 o'clock, come to the training venue, where I had a training at 8 a.m. Training in the pool lasted from 8 to 12:30, and then we went for an hour and a half to the gym, where we did general physical exercise, stretching and then went for massage, lunch and went home. At about 17-00 I arrived home and enjoyed my spare time.

@ anacatarina3 - What do you think of before the performance?
- I try to think of almost nothing before performances and suppress any thoughts. I can say that when I stood before the start in Kazan, there was a curtain, and I wanted to push it all the time and look at the audience, to find my parents who were there too . But then I remembered that it was still the Championships and I just can’t do such a thing right now. So I banished all the redundant thoughts out of my head, thinking only of my performance, trying to determine what can be done better.

@ bea_e2002 - How much do you get nervous before a performance?
- Always nervous, but it is hard to explain how much. In fact, I think the coach is more nervous because during the competition she can’t correct anything personally. I think it is normal for an athlete to be nervous. When we are 100% confident (though it is never really happens), probably something is wrong. If I'm worried, nervous, then everything goes stable.

@ bea_e2002 – Do you do something to attract good luck?
- Athletes are very superstitious people. I won’t mention any special signs, but let’s say we try to pay attention to dreams that we had before the competition. Also, we try to start the day and spend it as the previous one, if it was successful.

@ isobel.davies - What did you felt while preparing for domestic Championships in Kazan?
- Frankly - it was exciting. But I was sure that everything would be fine. For us it was a great responsibility to perform at home, and we could not let the country down.

@ kesha_kolokolchik - Do you have time to see the sights of the city in which hosts the event?
- Unfortunately, we only see the city from the window of the bus. Very rarely we have the opportunity to walk around, and even when we have such a chance, we are in a hurry to get back home, because we’re very tired, want to come to your family and friends, just to relax. It is my 10th time in Kazan so far. I was there on a vacation, competed at the Universiade. I feel really comfortable here.

Jesus Vazquez Altshow - A huge number of people always watching you. How do you deal with emotions? Do you feel the burden of responsibility to the audience?
- There is the burden of responsibility for the outcome. Honestly, I can’t say that we are incredibly worried about so many people watching us performing. Perhaps this is one of the components of our excitement. Personally, it helps me. I believe that this is some kind of support, a clot of energy that gives me some impulse to action.

Victoria Olenberg - Your sport is close to art. In connection with this question: do you love the ballet?
- I love the ballet, just recently went to the Bolshoi Theatre on the Small Stage. We are engaged in choreography, and we try to involve it in our sports schools program too. We have a choreographer Nicholas, who worked in the Bolshoi Theater. Indeed, synchronized swimming is very similar to ballet. I can’t say that we just borrow some elements, but we try to take over aesthetics and plastic, sometimes even imitate our ballerinas.

Denis Stepantsev - Are you familiar with a sense of courage? How did you reach it?
- Yes, it's a familiar feeling to me. I have it, I must confess, more on training sessions, because during competitions we are trying to remove all emotions, otherwise it may be something terrible. Each athlete has his own emotions, and sometimes splash of emotions can happen. Sometimes our coach on purpose stirs us up during trainings, cheers us up when he wants us to practice the performance with all the emotions, because as soon as you fully show your emotions, it increases the level of difficulty.

Andrey Ataev - How do you think when finally the entire planet will speak in Russian, and even foreign journalists will ask you a question in your native language?
- I think everybody understands that it is will never happen. I think sooner the planet will speak in Chinese. But people should speak their mother tongue. And even when we are present at the press conference, I believe that athletes who have won any place should be interviewed only in their native language. I speak in Russian.


Photo: R-Sport / MIA Rossiya Segodnya

Our 16th FINA World Masters Championships 2015 in Kazan came to an end.
Thank you very much! We will always remember these wonderful days.